


Stoutland's Origin

by orphan_account



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: Escape, Gen, Old Age, Origin Story, Ride Pokemon, Running Away, Stoutland has Arthritis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-16
Updated: 2018-09-16
Packaged: 2019-07-12 21:39:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 921
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16003838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Pokemon don't just randomly pop up in mansions out in the middle of the woods. They all have to come from somewhere, and Stoutland is no different. Thrown into an uncomfortable situation brought on by his old age, he does whatever he can to secure his freedom from the people who want to ship him away.





	Stoutland's Origin

**Author's Note:**

> I've never actually watched the Sun and Moon anime lol but I got this request a long time ago and did my best to write something good for the character based on clips I found on YouTube.

“So, how bad is it?”

“Pretty bad. I tried to get him to carry a little kid today, and he couldn’t even manage that.”

Stoutland laid down in the hallway outside of the manager’s office, listening to the people inside talk about him as if he wasn’t within hearing distance. It was something he had gotten used to after all of his years working for Alola Transit. As long as they couldn’t see you, the humans assumed that you either couldn’t hear, or that you weren’t bothering to listen. It was as amusing as it was offensive.

“Drat… And you showed him to the nurse, right? You’re sure it’s not just a leg injury or something?”

“Yeah, the nurse checked him over real good and she says that she’s never been so sure of a diagnosis. He’s got arthritis. Bad arthritis.”

If only he had been capable of speaking human, Stoutland would have told them himself that it was more than a sprained ankle. He was getting old, and he knew it. The aches in his joints were evidence enough that he wasn’t a pup anymore. It felt like an eternity had passed since he was hatched, taken from his mother at twelve weeks old, and sent to Paniola Ranch for his training.

“That’s a shame, he’s always been one of our best. What about his nose? Is his nose still working?”

“Oh, better than ever. We’ve never had a problem with his nose. If he can’t walk, though, a good nose isn’t worth much.”

“You’re right, you’re right..”

Always one of the best. That’s right. Ever since he became a Ride Pokemon, he’d been praised by his bosses for his excellent work. He could carry the heaviest loads, stay patient with the rowdiest children, and go on the longest hikes without needing so much as a sip of water. It made him proud to know that despite being bred for his kind of work, he did his job better than the others of his kind.

“What do you recommend that we do with him?”

“He’s served us well all this time, it wouldn’t feel right to just give him out to someone. Let’s put him on Permanent Leave instead, yeah? Let him spend his golden years somewhere nice.”

Those words made Stoutland’s ears perk up. Permanent Leave. He’d heard other employees throw that phrase around before. It was a nicer way of saying they were going to ship him off. Because he no longer had a place there, working for them, they would send him to some other region that he’d never seen before, out of their sight and therefore far away from their thoughts. They were planning on uprooting him from the only place he had ever known as home, just to make themselves feel better about not wanting to deal with him anymore. Those two words made him more sick to his stomach than any joint pain ever could.

“Alright, that’s probably the best way to go. He’ll have more space in Unova than he does here, anyway.”

The door began to open next to him, sending a sudden jolt of panic down his spine. He couldn’t let them take him. Not willingly, at least. Mustering up what energy and motivation he could, Stoutland stood up on his sore legs and bounded down the hallway toward the building’s main exit. He ignored the people as they shouted after him, telling him to stop and come back. As far as he was concerned, the Transit Center held no more for him, and there was no point in stopping if none of them could catch up with him on foot.

Once he was out the front doors, racing past a confused employee who had just been opening them to go inside, he had no idea where he was going to go. He ran down the streets of Hau’oli City, jumping over gates, cutting through back alleys, and avoiding people as much as he could before he found himself breaching the edge of a thick forest. Maybe it was instinct that led him there, toward the cover and the camouflage that the trees and vines provided for him. Maybe it was the desire to be somewhere wild and free.

It wasn’t much longer before his old age started to get the best of him. Slowing, stumbling through the greenery, he made his way into the middle of a large, empty clearing covered with gnarled, half-buried tree roots. He collapsed there, exhausted, and spent a generous amount of time catching his breath. He couldn’t hear the sound of human footsteps, nor could he smell any human scents. From what he could tell, he had gotten away. He was free. Free to do whatever he wanted.

The very first thing he did was take a nap. A long, careless, wonderful nap.

For many months thereafter, between long periods of rest, he wandered languidly around the entirety of Melemele Island. It didn’t take him long to find his favorite rest spots, one of which being an oddly abandoned mansion out in the middle of the woods. There was a couch inside that was his perfect size, and he was content to lay on it for days at a time. Nothing disturbed him while he slept on it, secluded, sheltered, and completely hidden away.

He was alone a great deal of the time, and he thought he liked it that way.

Until one day, when a small black creature set foot inside the mansion.

“Mrow?”

**Author's Note:**

> Tumblr: [queenredwrites](https://queenredwrites.tumblr.com/)


End file.
